Human and Divine

Knowing that God not only knows but experienced what it was to be a human being, composed of blood and flesh and bone, limited by all the things that limit us, should give us patience with our weakness and joy in our strength. In our prayers for help, we can say, "You know what it's like," and be confident that he does. But we can also look to the end of the story and know that by being one of us, he was able to raise us up to overcome those limits—and the final limit of death itself. As St. Irenaeus put it so well, "He became human so that we might become divine."

—from the book The Peace of Christmas: Quiet Reflections with Pope Francis

†Quote "If you wish to go to extremes, let it be in sweetness, patience, humility and charity." — St. Philip Neri

† Meditation of the Day "Augustine drew out the meaning of the manger using an idea that at first seems almost shocking, but on closer examination contains a profound truth. The manger is the place where animals find their food. But now, lying in the manger, is he who called himself the true bread come down from heaven, the true nourishment that we need in order to be fully ourselves. This is the food that gives us true life, eternal life. Thus the manger becomes a reference to the table of God, to which we are invited so as to receive the bread of God. From the poverty of Jesus' birth emerges the miracle in which man's redemption is mysteriously accomplished." — Pope Benedict XVI, p. 68 An Excerpt From Jesus of Nazareth Infancy

† Verse of the Day "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it."

Isaiah 55:9-11

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Saint Dominic of Silos

(c. 1000 – December 20, 1073)

It's not the founder of the Dominicans we honor today, but there's a poignant story that connects both Dominics.

Our saint today, Dominic of Silos, was born in Spain around the year 1000 into a peasant family. As a young boy he spent time in the fields, where he welcomed the solitude. He became a Benedictine priest and served in numerous leadership positions. Following a dispute with the king over property, Dominic and two other monks were exiled. They established a new monastery in what at first seemed an unpromising location. Under Dominic's leadership, however, it became one of the most famous houses in Spain. Many healings were reported there.

About 100 years after Dominic's death, a young woman who experienced difficult pregnancies made a pilgrimage to his tomb. There Dominic of Silos appeared to her and assured her that she would bear another son. The woman was Joan of Aza, and the son she bore grew up to be the "other" Dominic—Dominic Guzman, the one who founded the Dominicans.

For hundreds of years thereafter, the staff used by Saint Dominic of Silos was brought to the royal palace whenever a queen of Spain was in labor. That practice ended in 1931. Reflection

Saint Dominic of Silos' connection with the Saint Dominic who founded the Dominican Order brings to mind the film Six Degrees of Separation: We are all connected it seems. God's providential care can bring people together in mysterious ways, but it all points to his love for each of us.

Thursday of the Third Week of Advent

Reading 1 Is 7:10-14

The LORD spoke to Ahaz: Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, "I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!" Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6 R. (see 7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. The LORD's are the earth and its fullness; the world and those who dwell in it. For he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD? or who may stand in his holy place? He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean, who desires not what is vain. R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. He shall receive a blessing from the LORD, a reward from God his savior. Such is the race that seeks for him, that seeks the face of the God of Jacob. R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.

Gospel Lk 1:26-38

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end."

But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God."

Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

Meditation: Luke 1:26-38 3rd Week of Advent

But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be?" (Luke 1:34)

Imagine you are a child, and it's Christmas morning. You are opening presents in front of the tree, and you spot a large package with your name on it. You open the package, and it's a model airplane—but the instructions for assembling it are missing. You're perplexed, and you ask your parents, "How am I supposed to put this together?" But then your parents offer to help you, and with their help, the model gets built.

In some ways, Mary's initial response to the angel is like this child's first reaction to his gift. Even as the sinless Mother of God, she still reacts in a human way. She doesn't deny that her calling is real, but she wonders just how it's supposed to come about. And so she asks a question—as any of us would. Then, after she hears the angel's explanation, Mary is ready to take the first step of obedience—even if she doesn't completely understand God's plan.

Certainly, Mary's calling was unique, and we can't equate our walk with hers. But we can still draw an important lesson here: God's biggest plans for us don't always come with detailed instructions. In fact, sometimes they might seem more like problems than blessings! But as he did for Mary, God will unveil his plan for you a little at a time, as you take the next step of faith, and the next one, and the next one. Mary learned more about her calling when she visited her cousin Elizabeth, who greeted her as "the mother of my Lord" (Luke 1:43).

According to Pope Francis, "The Holy Spirit doesn't come with a full package of certainty." But if we ask the Spirit, he will guide us one step at a time, and give us "the certainty for that moment, the answer for that moment" (Homily, April 30, 2018).

So don't be afraid to ask the Holy Spirit about your life or your future. He may not give you a complete blueprint. But he will give you the wisdom to know what to do today, the strength to carry it out, and the trust that tomorrow will work out. Your biggest Christmas presents will get unwrapped—but often that process happens one day at a time!

"Lord, I am trusting you to work things out today. I believe that you hold tomorrow in your hands."

Isaiah 7:10-14 Psalm 24:1-6

2 cents : "... the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel." A troubling sign for a troubled nation. A contradictory sign, for God works in the norm, normally. Unless...it comes to Jesus. Unless...this is God Himself. Then all norms fall by the wayside. Whence God intervenes, all rules go out the door, for He is King. In this case, a virgin, most pure, most lowly, most humble, the least of all...was to bear the God-child. Behold, the lamb of God!

Let us pray: "Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. The LORD's are the earth and its fullness; the world and those who dwell in it. For he founded it upon the seas and stablished it upon the rivers. He shall receive a blessing from the LORD, a reward from God his savior. Such is the race that seeks for him, that seeks the face of the God of Jacob." I'm interested in this race of people, for I have a vested interest. I have been incorporated through baptism into this particular race. This race though, is not merely a baptized soul, but one that seeks God's face. The race that seeks God's face. What is it about seeing someone's face? Everything. You can't read the back of the head! LOL. Face to face is to face the truth. And Jesus is the truth. Seeking the truth. Seeking God.

In the Holy Gospel, Blessed Mother Mary encounters the face of an angel, who says something that perplexes her, troubles her, so what perplexed this soul? The Archangel had said ""Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."

Wait...what? LOL. Here we have a mere young teenager girl, praying, totally devoted to God, just praying alone in her room, when an angel appears and says to her as if she were a queen "ALL HAIL FULL OF GRACE!". As if she got terribly perplexed about the whole thing, "I'm not a person to consider as such!". Why the honor salute? And so the angel must comfort her "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God." And what was God's favor? What was God's will? He bestowed on her, charged her with HIS SON. She would conceive, and she would believe. She would have this child, and she would raise Him. "He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." A King? A Kingdom? Ahh! No wonder she was greeted as a queen. Amen? She is now royalty. She has been found worthy, of the Lamb of God. She has been crowned at that instant. She has been appointed and anointed. "But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" No relations. She says "I don't do relations with men". She is not touched. She is not defiled. She IS NOT impure. She is consecrated as such. The child she would bear would not be Joseph's, she would never belong to Joseph in that way. Saint Joseph would not defile her either, for he was said to have been a chosen and righteous man, very Holy. Our world can not comprehend the world of that age. Our world is sex crazed, impure, even Mother Mary appeared and told the Fatima children how millions of souls are going to hell because of impurity. Wide is the road that leads to perdition. Those millions believe "just be good and you'll go to Heaven". Those millions believe their sins "aren't hurting anyone". Those millions believe "you don't need to pray and you don't need church". Those millions believe that the truth has been lost. Those millions are lost. Is it right? All we have here is Mother Mary and an Angel. A private revelation that changes the entire world. The angel's last words are "....for nothing will be impossible for God." And then vanishes after Mary says ""Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." A servant's words. The words of Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane. Not my will...but yours. I am a handmaid. I am hand made by God. I am a maid, a servant of God. I bow down. I take in humiliation and humility what God serves. My life...is no longer mine. For I have been given to God's will. Freely.

Mother Mary serves as the supreme example of our life in Christ. Designed for a specific purpose. To carry Christ, to cherish Christ, to live for Christ, and to die with Christ and for Christ Jesus. She serves as an example to the world what the Christian should be. She is the world's first Christian and first Saint.

Shall we acknowledge the fact? Shall we not live as she did in total trust? I mean, look at how it all transpired in a gist: "Mary, you're having God's baby" and the angel disappears! Say Whaaat? Now what? What's next? Her life begins. Her journey begins in seeking answers. Amen? Seek and ye shall find. Jesus is born and she must raise Him and teach Him and watch over Him, it is God's child! And this is the life story of a faithful soul. God enters our life. I told the Posadas crowd last night that we carry, like Mary, Jesus inside with the Holy Eucharist. We must take the light unto the dark world. We must bring forth the joy of God our Lord.

How? How can we do this? My dear one, you've been with me for so long and still do not know?

Seek His Face. The truth. When Mary saw Jesus' face, she saw some of her features in Him. Human features. But, she also saw God's promise. What was said became true. Amazing. Truth revealed is amazing. And that is enough.

So taste and see. When you see the Eucharist held up in Mass, it is the Lord. The Lord's hands hold up Jesus. "This is MY Body". Behold the Lamb of God. His sacrifice. The journey is a sacrifice, if it is a journey of love.

Embark with me to a path less traveled...with Blessed Mother Mary. . .